Hollywood's Academy To Hold Meeting Over Harvey Weinstein Allegations

As an onslaught of sexual abuse accusations continue to mount against Harvey Weinstein, prestigious industry organizations are moving to cut ties with the Hollywood mogul.

As an onslaught of sexual abuse accusations continue to mount against Harvey Weinstein, prestigious industry organizations are moving to cut ties with the Hollywood mogul.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced in a statement that its board of governors will meet Saturday to discuss the numerous reports that have chronicled years of sexual harassment and assault allegations against the film producer.

The Academy also distanced itself from Weinstein’s alleged behavior, calling it “repugnant” and against the organization’s standards.

“The Academy finds the conduct described in the allegations against Harvey Weinstein to be repugnant, abhorrent, and antithetical to the high standards of the Academy and the creative community it represents. The Board of Governors will be holding a special meeting on Saturday, October 14, to discuss the allegations against Weinstein and any actions warranted by the Academy.”

Acting as gatekeepers for the industry, members of the Academy vote annually for the Oscars and oversee film-preservation endeavors. Weinstein is an Academy member.

The London-based British Academy of Film and Television Arts, another prestigious industry organization, announced it had suspended Weinstein’s membership, calling his alleged behavior “completely unacceptable.” BAFTA, the British equivalent of the Academy, is the first major industry organization to give Weinstein the boot.

“Whilst BAFTA has previously been a beneficiary of Mr. Weinstein’s support for its charitable work, it considers the reported alleged behavior completely unacceptable and incompatible with BAFTA’s values,” the organization said in a statement Wednesday.

“We hope this announcement sends a clear message that such behavior has absolutely no place in our industry.”

A growing number of actresses and former employees of Weinstein have come forward with accusations of sexual assault, harassment and coercion. In many of the instances, women allege that Weinstein invited them into his hotel room under the guise of a film or work meeting, then pressured them into sexual or suggestive acts.

Weinstein is one of Hollywood’s most powerful men, having won Best Picture for “Shakespeare in Love” at the 1998 Oscars, and receiving another nomination for Best Picture for “Gangs of New York at the 2003 Oscars, according to the Hollywood Reporter. He was a producer on both films.

Weinstein’s production companies have also won Oscars for “The English Patient,” “The King’s Speech” and “The Artist.”